Georgia prosecutor to investigate Lt. Gov. Jones in Trump election case, after Willis disqualified

A Georgia special prosecutor will now determine whether GOP Lt. Gov. Burt Jones will face criminal charges in the state's Trump election interference case. 

The Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia said Thursday that its executive director, Pete Skandalakis will be on the case.

Skandalakis reportedly appointed himself after being tasked with try to find a prosecutor after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was barred from prosecuting Jones. 

Willis was barred because in July 2022 she held a fundraiser for a Jones political opponent, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. 

Jones was one of the 16 Republicans who signed a certificate that said former President Donald Trump had won Georgia in the 2020 presidential election and declared themselves the state’s “duly elected and qualified” electors.

The lieutenant governor argued that Willis should not be the one to pursue charges against him due to her openly supporting his Democratic opponent during his race. 

Last year Willis indicted Trump, now the presumptive 2024 GOP presidential nominee, and 18 co-defendants over their efforts to challenge the 2020 election results in Georgia.